GREENS, HERBS AND FOUGERES / earthy · woody · rich
Dried Fallen Leaves
Category
GREENS, HERBS AND FOUGERES
Subcategory
earthy · woody · rich
Origin
Volatility
Base Note
Botanical
N/A — various deciduous trees
Appearance
Brown to dark brown dried leaf material; in perfumery, a recreated earthy-woody accord
Odor Strength
Medium
Producing Countries
N/A — olfactory concept
Pyramid
Base
Damp decay and tannin-brown warmth. The smell of autumn forest floor: half-decomposed oak and maple, fungal, earthy, with a faint sweetness from released sugars.
Woody-dry with a tannin-brown astringency. Earthy and slightly fungal, like turning over a layer of mulch. A faint sweetness from decomposing sugars. Less sharp than green leaves, less clean than dried herbs. Damp rather than dusty, despite the name. The overall quality is of gentle decay.
Evolution over time
Immediately
Immediately
Woody-dry, tannin astringency
After a few hours
After a few hours
Earthy-fungal, damp decay, faint sweetness
After a few days
After a few days
Persistent earthy-woody warmth
The Full Story
Dried fallen leaves is a fantasy accord in perfumery capturing the scent of autumn leaf litter. It is a suggestive atmospheric notes, triggering immediate seasonal associations: temperate forests in October, cool mornings, the crunch underfoot.
The scent is a complex mixture of decomposition chemistry: tannins releasing from broken cell walls, cellulose breaking down into sugars, fungal organisms beginning their work, soil microorganisms producing geosmin. The accord combines woody-dry elements (dry cedar, birch bark), earthy-fungal notes (patchouli, vetiver), tannin-like astringency, and a faint sweetness from decomposing sugars.
In composition, the note functions as a heart-to-base modifier in autumnal, forest-floor, and melancholic compositions. It provides temporal and spatial specificity: not just trees but trees in November, not just forest but forest at ground level.
This note in Première Peau. Simili Mirage · Gravitas Capitale. Sample all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.
The specific smell of autumn leaves comes largely from carotenoid pigments breaking down as chlorophyll degrades. These compounds were present all summer but masked by green chlorophyll. Their decomposition products include beta-ionone, the same molecule found in violet and orris.
Extraction & Chemistry
Extraction method: Fantasy accord. No extraction. Composed from dry woody oils (cedar, birch bark), patchouli, vetiver, traces of geosmin, and tannin-like synthetic materials.
Molecular Formula
N/A — complex decomposition mixture
CAS Number
N/A — olfactory concept, not a single molecule
Botanical Name
N/A — various deciduous trees
IFRA Status
No known restrictions
Synonyms
leaf litter, autumn leaves, dry foliage
Physical Properties
Odor Strength
Medium
Appearance
Brown to dark brown dried leaf material; in perfumery, a recreated earthy-woody accord
In Perfumery
Dried fallen leaves is a fantasy heart-to-base modifier in autumnal, forest-floor, and atmospheric compositions. It provides the specific scent of decomposition without the unpleasantness of actual rot. Built from dry woody materials (cedar, birch bark), earthy-fungal notes (patchouli, vetiver, geosmin at trace levels), and tannin-astringent modifiers. Essential in compositions referencing autumn and temperate forests.
